Oxytocin, Attachment & Separation Anxiety

We are currently looking for participants for a study to explore the effects of oxytocin on attachment & to discover whether it can be used to help in the treatment of separation anxiety in dogs. Oxytocin is a naturally occurring hormone that is involved in bond formation in social relationships. In this study, we will compare results from an attachment test for dogs with and without separation anxiety, & we are currently looking for dogs that do not currently have separation anxiety & have not had separation anxiety in the past.

Dogs will receive a small dose of either oxytocin or saline nasally, & after a 40 minute waiting period, they will take part in a short attachment test with their owners in order to determine how much time dogs spend in proximity to their owners before & after a short (2 minute) separation period.

We ask for each dog to participate twice (they will receive oxytocin during one visit and saline during the other), with dates of participation spaced about two weeks apart.

We will be recruiting for dogs with separation anxiety in the future, so please fill out the form at the link below if you have a dog with separation anxiety & would like to be notified when we begin recruiting!

If you are interested in participating, please sign up here. For more information, contact Lauren Thielke: laurenthielke [at] gmail.com